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Book Description

Twenty-eight-year-old Tomi Reyes is a documentary filmmaker who moonlights as a receptionist to pay the bills. It’s a pretty easy gig—until she receives an unexpected promotion, and her somewhat interesting life goes totally insane.

For starters, her new boss, Scott Martin, morphs from nice guy into creepy dictator in the space of, like, five seconds. Then Justin Thyme, Tomi’s occasional boyfriend, is found murdered and stuffed inside his refrigerator. Before Tomi can get over the shock, her friend Whim meets the same gruesome fate. Tomi has a sneaking suspicion that new-boss-Scott has a hand in all of this, but the evidence to both of the murders is pointing to her! She is wondering how she'll look in an orange jumper, when her childhood pal is assigned to the case. Nicholas “Nickels” Turino, is now an FBI agent, and a hot one at that. When the killer starts stalking Tomi—going as far as turning her fridge into her waiting tomb—the not-so-swift hand of justice drives Tomi to act. She sets out to unmask the killer herself or die trying. Seriously underdressed for such a cold-blooded death, Tomi is determined to live.

Twenty-eight-year-old Tomi Reyes is a documentary filmmaker who moonlights as a receptionist to pay the bills. It’s a pretty easy gig—until she receives an unexpected promotion, and her somewhat interesting life goes totally insane.

For starters, her new boss, Scott Martin, morphs from nice guy into creepy dictator in the space of, like, five seconds. Then Justin Thyme, Tomi’s occasional boyfriend, is found murdered and stuffed inside his refrigerator. Before Tomi can get over the shock, her friend Whim meets the same gruesome fate. Tomi has a sneaking suspicion that new-boss-Scott has a hand in all of this, but the evidence to both of the murders is pointing to her! She is wondering how she'll look in an orange jumper, when her childhood pal is assigned to the case. Nicholas “Nickels” Turino, is now an FBI agent, and a hot one at that. When the killer starts stalking Tomi—going as far as turning her fridge into her waiting tomb—the not-so-swift hand of justice drives Tomi to act. She sets out to unmask the killer herself or die trying. Seriously underdressed for such a cold-blooded death, Tomi is determined to live.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Title character Tomi Reyes, a well-endowed 28-year-old, is a documentary filmmaker at heart, who records the pick-up lines of men she passes on the street. Meanwhile, she’s a receptionist at a San Francisco architectural firm, a job that gives her weekend time in Alameda with the grandfather who, after their parents died in a car crash, raised her and two older brothers. But shortly after she’s promoted to assistant to married executive Scott Martin, he starts hitting on her and exhibiting mercurial moods. Then Tomi’s friends start dying. First her sometime-lover, Justin, is murdered, his body stuffed into his refrigerator. Days later, her lesbian friend, Whim, is killed in the same way, leaving Tomi not only grieving but a suspect in both killings. When Tomi’s childhood friend, Nick Turino, moves back to the Bay Area, their relationship heats up personally and professionally. An FBI agent tracking a serial killer, Nick can’t keep Tomi from pursuing her own detecting. Even at its most lethal, this breezy outing is sexy and lighthearted, thanks, especially, to Tomi’s quirky listmaking.— Michele Leber

Review

"Annette's wit is so sharp, you can slice, dice, and shred with it." - J. Michael Orenduff, 2011 Lefty Winner, The Pot Thief Who Studied Einstein

"In Spitfire Annette tickles and titillates and yanks on our funny bones on every page with a timing and pace I’ve rarely seen. Read the damned book." - Colin Cotterill, The Coroner's Lunch

"Annette Sandoval's fiction is like high voltage. Once you pick up Spitfire you won't be able to put it down." -John Lutz, Final Seconds, and Serial

This book is not the "murder mystery" or "thriller" that flood the market already. What we have here is a fantastic story about Tomi. It just so happens that she's caught up in some murders. And each step of the way, we're lucky enough to follow her along as she tries to prove her innocence while keeping herself alive. Except that there's so much more here!

Not to get all academic, but Annette Sandoval (the author) must've paid extra close attention in Character Development class, because the characters here aren't just believable, they're dang near lifelike. (Apparently she's not a new author, but certainly new to me.) But what makes Spitfire stand out significantly over other stories is that the murder/thriller aspect of the book isn't the driver: the character is, and it's done so flawlessly.

This was a highly enjoyable book that, at just over 300 pages, goes much more quickly than I would have imagined. There's no "filler" or fluff in any of the chapters that the reader has to trudge through - everything throughout the book is interesting, adds to the mystery, is funny, or is otherwise greatly entertaining.

I'd recommend this to anyone that wanted a bit more lighthearted murder mystery, or a funny "city living for a girl with some bad luck" type - it certainly spans genres.

Some books have a plot that sounds ho-hum. That might include, "Young woman in San Francisco is a 'person of interest' in a murder investigation and so looks for an opportunity to clear her name." But what makes one story stand above the others is a spunky, funny character with clever repartee. And Spitfire delivers in spades. I picked this book up and read it pretty much straight through. Except for frequent breaks for laughter.

Which is not to imply that Spitfire is a wimp-ass mystery that loses the fact of a dead body to discover and a murderer to find in an effort to be chortle-worthy. Because the dead-body-generation is fairly horrific, and our heroine does not take it lightly. It's just that this book is so well told, with a main character whom I *really* liked, that you can comfortably put this into your Summer Reading pile.

The basics: Tomi's been a receptionist for several years, at a job that requires so little active attention that she's put her "office" time to good use by taking online classes. But a promotion to become executive assistant to one of the bosses comes with a salary increase that's too good to resist. Even if the boss is a bit too attracted to Tomi's bosom and office politics intensify. All of which she could cope with, except an ex-boyfriend turns up dead, and Tomi doesn't have a great alibi. She has to do a bunch of investigation to find who DID do it. Right?

What makes this special, and easy to recommend if you want good escapist fiction (with a few steamy sex scenes) is the smart-ass humor that never devolves into meanness. For instance, during a (no-spoilers) scene when Tomi attends a wedding, the priest presents the newly married couple to their family and friends. "It occurs to me that the smiling bride looks like she's covered in doilies," she thinks to herself. "When I squint, she looks like one of those lovely toilet roll cover crocheted dolls." When the head-turning Tomi sits down to a geeky guy in a laundromat and then realizes the guy thinks she's coming onto him, she feels a little guilty about appearing to join him. "It was like lighting a tree in front of a kid on Christmas, then chucking it into a wood chipper."

Hmm, as I read those out of context they don't seem like much. But Sandoval has timing and creates such of-course-they-are-real characters that these both made me chuckle aloud.

Plus the mystery is very good. I definitely had no idea how the puzzle would work out.

Bottom line: If you're looking for an entertaining beach read -- go ahead and click on Add To Cart. You won't be sorry.Read more ›

SpitfireBy: Annette SandovalTomi Reyes works as a receptionist for an architectural firm. Her ex-boyfriend is killed and she is being questioned in his murder.This is a quick read that is funny with amusing dialogue and the characters are likeable for the most part.I am not sure how I feel about the lead though. She is 28 but seems a little immature compared to the other characters and just something about her I didn't like.It wasn't the Yo Mamma jokes as they were pretty funny. I get her joking around and humor but for several chapters I liked her but then she would make some comment and then I didn't, I can't really put my finger on anything specific.Another reason I liked this book was that it's a light read. The characters that die, we don't get to know them in depth.We know a little background and that they are well liked and good friends with the rest of the main characters.The story itself is entertaining and page turning but predictable and forgettable after reading. I think this is a good book to read in between genres. In my case I read a lot of horror and thrillers and this is a nice change of pace. I think this would make a great beach/poolside read.

I loved this book! Spitfire had me laughing and smiling from page one. I believe that Annette Sandoval can do a series on Tomisita Reyes also known as Tomi who is the main character in the book. She has a good friend in the company that she works with named Samantha. The two of them write inter-office memos to each other all day long with Yo Mama jokes included. I love Yo Mama jokes! Tomi is feisty and looks at being an administrative assistant as a bad thing because it means more work for her. She has strange friends but it helps to keep the story moving along and diversified.

Tomi is 28 years old, lives in San Francisco, is Mexican and the biggest characteristic about her is her boobs. Men notice that above all else even though she happens to be pretty, smart, and funny in my opinion. She uses her iPhone to captures on video guys bad pick up lines. She is planning to create a film with them since her dream is to become a documentary film maker. However, to pay the bills she works as a receptionist at Royce Durand and Associates. She does anything but work on her computer and her adventures on her computer always make me laugh. She represents all the naughty things we do when we are supposed to be working.

We learn in the beginning that one of her good friends was murdered and stuffed in a refrigerator. Her boss is weird and Tomi gets bad vibes from him. She bungles her way through this mystery to protect her friends and get to the bottom of the case. She gets into a lot of mishaps this way and they are truly funny. On the back of the book, Spitfire was compared to Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum novels. I think Spitfire is way more interesting and fleshed out. The fact that Tomi is not caucasian already adds a different element that makes it interesting. In fact her Mexican background (or lack of it) contributes to some of the humor that is in the book. The fact that she bungles her way through this mystery is the only thing that is similar to Stephanie Plum. I think Annette Sandoval really needs to consider writing a Tomi Series. She is a character that is easy to love along with her wacky friends.

I don't want to ruin the fun of this book by saying anymore. However, if you want a fun ride: a little bit of adventure, a little bit of action, and a whole lot of laughs, then this is the book for you. Spitfire is a perfect title for this book too! I really hope that Annette Sandoval will consider creating a series for this. I found this book more interesting and fleshed out than the Janet Evanovich Stephanie Plum.Read more ›

More About the Author

Annette Sandoval's writing is tightly bound to her experiences as a Mexican-American. The youngest of five children, she began life in the barrio neighborhoods of Santa Ana, California. She was named after a Mouseketeer--her mother wanted one of her children to have an "American" name.

Her parents were both born in the Mexican state of Jalisco. Her father, Manuel, worked as a migrant worker and later as a janitor in a convent, where he was sponsored for green card status. After securing work and papers, he sent for his fifteen-year-old bride, Felicitas.

After moving to San Francisco at the age of twenty-one, Annette spent the next decade backpacking around the world, touring nearly every continent on her own.